


Coffee and Heartbreak

by glindathegood



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-20
Updated: 2015-12-20
Packaged: 2018-05-07 19:10:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5467802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glindathegood/pseuds/glindathegood
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My 2015 Rumbelle Secret Santa gift.  Prompt: Coffee at midnight.  Post 4a fix it fic.  Late night coffee becomes a reminder to Belle.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Coffee and Heartbreak

**Author's Note:**

  * For [earthoranyrealm on tumblr](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=earthoranyrealm+on+tumblr).



“Sweetheart?”  
Belle’s head snapped up bringing her back to reality. She turned to see her husband walking down the steps, a slightly amused smile on his face.  
“Are you still reading that book?” he asked and sat down next to her on the couch. “It’s nearly midnight.”  
Belle looked over at the clock on the wall, and saw that Rumple was right. She had started reading earlier that evening, and got so swept up in the story that she had barely even noticed the time pass.  
“I guess the time just got away from me,” she admitted.  
“Must be an extremely good book. Not that it takes much with you,” he joked, and Belle rolled her eyes at him.  
“It is. I wish I could finish it, but I doubt I’ll be able to stay awake that long,” she said with a yawn.  
Rumple’s eyes twinkled. “You know, I think I have the perfect remedy for that.”  
Belle looked back at him, an inquisitive look on her face. “I’m listening….”  
Rumple chuckled as he stood up and walked into the kitchen. “Coffee, of course,” he said simply. Belle smiled and watched as he carefully prepared the coffee. When he finished, he sat down next to Belle once more and handed her a cup.  
“Let’s get back to that book now, shall we?  
Soon, their midnight coffee breaks became habit. At least twice a week they could be found snuggled up on the couch, coffee and a book in their hands. Sometimes they didn’t even read, but only sat in each other's company, enjoying the feeling of togetherness. However, this didn’t last for long. Suddenly Belle’s world came crashing down around her. The life she had finally gotten used to in Storybrooke was gone, and the husband she thought she knew, that she thought had changed, betrayed her in the worst way possible.  
After that fateful night at the town line, Belle couldn’t bring herself to go back to their house. The thought of sleeping alone in that large house was too much, so instead she checked into Granny’s for the night. Nobody stopped by to check on her, or even say thank you, but that was to be expected. Nobody even knew where Rumple was yet. So Belle simply sat in silence, her thoughts and emotions swirling in her head. Eventually, she decided it would be best to get some sleep and hopefully forget everything for a few hours. Without a change of clothes, she climbed into the bed, feeling the emptiness beside her.  
After what seemed like hours, sleep still would not come. Belle tossed and turned, trying to close her mind from the thoughts that haunted her. Giving in to her frustration, Belle sat up and flipped the light on. She contemplated her surroundings, looking for a distraction, and on the far side of the room sat a coffee maker. She warily got out of bed and tiptoed over to the counter where it sat. Belle opened the bag, and the smell of coffee overwhelmed her sense. More memories came rushing back, flooding her mind, and Belle stifled a sob. Every late, loving night she had spent with Rumple was now back as clear as day, which only intensified the emptiness she now felt. The sudden emotions hit her like a ton of bricks, and the tears she had been fighting to hold back for so long broke through. Out of nowhere she was back in the chair, tears streaming down her face. She stayed there for the rest of the night, falling in and out of a fitful sleep.  
The next day, Belle finally worked up the courage to go back to the house. She wasn’t staying there, of course not, but she figured she could pack her things quickly and never have to go back there again. She permanently moved into Granny’s (free of charge thanks to Ruby) and tried to forget. Will came along, and with him she didn’t feel quite so alone, but mostly it brought back biting memories of her true love lost.  
After six weeks the sharp pain had turned into a dull throb when her thoughts turned to Rumplestiltskin. She truly believed she would never see him again, and accepted it. Belle was in the library one evening when Ruby suddenly rushed in.  
“Belle! I don’t know if you know, do you? No you don’t. I… I heard Emma and the others talking in the diner. Apparently there are these people, Ursula and Cruella, they just got here, and… Rumplestiltskin is with them,” she said gently. Belle’s heart skipped a beat.  
“But, that’s impossible,” Belle, shaking her head. Ruby looked at her sympathetically.  
“It should be, but apparently not. I gotta get back to the diner, but I thought you should know.” Belle nodded, and Ruby turned to leave. “Call me if you need anything, alright?”  
Belle’s head was spinning. She had a second chance. She could talk to him again. She didn’t completely forgive him, but maybe now she could fix things, let him speak for once. But how would he react? Did she have a reason to be scared? She knew what she did was a betrayal, even if it felt justified. It was quite possible for him to be angry, even vengeful. There was a time when that never would have even come to mind, but after discovering all those lies, it felt like she didn’t know him at all. And yet she still loved him, that much was clear. She had to talk to him. At least to apologize. She took a deep breath and uttered  
“Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin. Rum-” She was cut off short by his sudden appearance. For a moment she just gaped. His look wasn’t angry or vengeful, but almost hopeful.  
“I-I didn’t think you’d come,” she admitted after a long silence.  
“Why wouldn’t I?” he asked, as though it were obvious.  
Belle felt relieved. “I thought you might be… angry with me.”  
Rumple looked taken aback. “Did you… Did you think I would hurt you?” he asked with a slightly horrified expression.  
“No. Yes? I don’t know honestly. I used to know that you would never hurt me, but after all this, I just didn’t know.”  
“Sweetheart…” he said, stepping forward. “I know how much I hurt you. But I would never harm you.” He reached out his hand to cup her cheek, but stopped himself abruptly.  
“I hurt you too. I don’t care how angry I was, I should never have used the dagger in that way. I’m so sorry.” She was nearly in tears already.  
Rumple embraced her tentatively. “Shhh, you have no reason to apologize. You were- probably still are- angry and betrayed. It was completely justifiable. If I hadn’t lied to you none of this would have happened. I’m so sorry Belle.”  
Belle longed to stay there in his arms forever. She felt safe again, and the loneliness that haunted her for the past month was gone. Even so, she pulled back slowly.  
“I just… Why did you do it? We were happy. We could have been happy,” she said. Rumple seemed to shrink upon hearing those words and looked down.  
“It’s this,” he said, and pulled out his heart. Belle gasped. It was nearly pitch black, except for one small pinprick of light red in the center. Rumple met Belle’s eyes again. “The darkness is overtaking me. I thought if I could cleave myself from the dagger it would stop it. If it doesn’t stop, there won’t be anything left of my soul, the dark one will take over completely. But it’s no excuse. I was wrong. I only hope you can forgive me. I don’t want to be without you.”  
Belle smiled sadly. “I do forgive you. And I want to be with you, but there’s a lot of broken trust.” Belle shook her head. “But I’m willing to work on it if you are. Things won’t go back to the way they were before for a long time, but maybe we can start fresh. Again.”  
Rumple took Belle’s hands, his face shining. “Of course I’m willing.”  
“Good. And we’ll figure out how to stop the darkness. Together.”  
They smiled at eachother and stayed silent for a few moments. “Would you like to go back to the house?” Rumple asked. “Just to talk, of course, but we might be more comfortable there.” Belle nodded, and they were swept up in magic. They sat on the couch talking almost the whole night, and the only thing keeping them awake was eachother’s presence and the coffee Rumple had made at midnight.


End file.
